YUM

Founders

DARK PENANCE

A heavy malt foundation includes Crystal malt for sweetness and just enough Midnight Wheat malt to push the color to black. The bitterness is huge, but balanced by malt sweetness. The hop flavors and aromas range from citrus to floral to pine thanks to a delicious blend of hand-selected Chinook and Centennial hops.

Worst beer ever

From Minhas Craft Brewery in Wisconsin. Wisconsin should be ashamed of itself, or at least its beer-loving citizens should demand better. This is a bad, bad beer. It isn't drinkable. Really, it's not.

Rather than describe its terrible-ness, I'll draw from a review on Beer Advocate:

"You ever make a really bad, inexcusable, incredibly offensive mistake? Maybe one time you accidentally killed your mom's dog (total accident, like you sat on it)? Or maybe you meant to fart in the pool only, whoops, out came poop, a lot of it, and you didn't tell anybody, just went inside, swim trunks still on, and sat down Indian style on your uncle's expensive Persian rug and played a few games of Uno. 

Those are bad things, man. But you know what? I got you some redemption. Drinking a full bottle of Shergill IPA is such an unimaginable, scary thing--such a life defining mistake--that it will supersede any and every other awful thing you've ever done. 

This looks, smells, and tastes like poison. Please pardon the lack of beer technicalities in that description--it's just that this doesn't in any way even slightly resemble beer. It's like some someone filled a bottle up with roach spray and it just got mislabeled at the factory. 

It's inexcusable. Every person who was involved in its manufacture and sale should ben ashamed of themselves. Just buying and attempting to consume it has made me a worse person. 

This isn't just a bad beer. It's an experience."

Another review noted that it's available at $9.00 a case. Well, there's a clue.

Let's see....others described it as:

• like a moldy piece of grass
• soggy cardboard
• dirty bathroom fixtures
• dead flower hops
• and last but not least......a malty infection

Ew! Consider this a public service announcement and avoid at all costs.

Cerveza, por favor

Enter the Mexican beer survey portion of this blog.

So far, the beer in Guadalajara has been predictable and decent. Pacifico is pretty good, and Victoria is tasty with a taco. It's a lot of 'beach beer' - mostly light, easy drinking, low alcohol. 

I was surprised this evening to find a mexican microbrew in the frig at the corner store. These beers are sold by the bottle rather than as a 6-pack, as are most of the refrigerated beers, so it's ideal for sampling. And, it's a black ale. Yum! Not sure what's going on in their label design. Anyway, on with the sampling. 

Looks pretty good in David's Payette glass. Nice color and head. Good smell. Reminds me of some other beer....maybe a boonville something or other? The smell might have made me too optimistic. I wanted some more fizz, but that's just my preference, and it was a little bit light/thin compared to what I was expecting. Still, I think I'd buy it again. It's a nice change-up if nothing else. 

Coming soon, another variety from the same brewer, Perro Negro. Apparently this brewer is a young student of another mexican craft brewer, who owns Sileno brewing. I'll keep my eyes out for Sileno beers as well. It's good to have goals.

Home Grown Hops

Straight from the garden in Scottsville, VA.

Thirsty?

The best beer in the world?

It really might be. 

Westvleteren 12 is a Belgian Trappist Ale that has consistently been voted the single best tasting beer in the world. All major beer rating sites agree that this is the pinnacle of beers, including: Beer Advocate, Rate Beer and Beer Pal.

That's a little over 2,300 beer experts saying that this is the best beer, anywhere.

Located in the western corner of Belgium, the St Sixtus Abbey (or Westvleteren Abdij) is home to the Trappist Westvleteren Brewery. The Brewery was founded in 1838 and is owned and operated by the monks of the St Sixus Abbey. 

Oktoberfest

Matt went to Germany and brought me this:

1L can + glass. Pretty sweet, right?

Yum.

Nice to have good neighbors.

Ugandan Brews

In Uganda, we have beer. It's all cheap and light and most 20 oz. bottles (the only size) cost about $1- $1.50. None of it is great, but it's readily available and sometimes cold. There aren't too many choices, but I've found my warm and cold favorites. 

Not pictured here, but also available in my village and throughout Uganda:

• Nile Special- I don't like it much, but it seems to be a hit with foreigners. The brewery is located on the Nile near Jinja, but I've heard that a brewery tour will turn you off from ever drinking a Nile again.
• Senator- a local favorite. I've only had it warm and when there's nothing else to choose from and I think it always tastes skunked and very metallic. The story goes that 'Senator' was created when President Obama became a Senator in 2004 (his father was Kenyan).
• Eagle- I was a fan at first. It has the highest abv (although still comes in under 6% I think), giving you the biggest 'bang for your buck.' In the beginning, I even though I could taste the hops. But now, every time I have one, I'm really disappointed. It just tastes like sweet water with a metallic aftertaste.

Tusker Lager, my cold favorite. It's light and refreshing after a hot day in the equatorial sun... and I like the label. Brewed in Kenya. The slogan, 'Bia Yangu, Nchi Yangu,' means, 'My beer, my country' in Swahili.

Tusker Malt, also from Kenya. It's the only 'local' beer that comes in a 12 oz. bottle but has the price tag of a 20 oz. bottle. Not bad, but I like the lager better.

Bell is a local favorite. My counterpart goes to 'Ring the Bell' during soccer games. I believe it's the oldest beer in Uganda, dating back to 1950.  It's a bit sweet for me, but I'll have one on occasion.

My favorite beer when there's no refrigeration, and more readily available than Tusker Lager, is 'Club.' It's quickly becoming my favorite. There isn't a lot of flavor, but it's a pleasant crisp lager that's really drinkable on a hot day. Best enjoyed on the shores of Lake Victoria, as pictured above :)